10 ms·

I'll be honest, hopefully you'll appreciate it because you need honest advice. I read your post and I can already hear the self-pity string quartet playing and

by gm 18y ago

I'll be honest, hopefully you'll appreciate it because you need honest advice. I read your post and I can already hear the self-pity string quartet playing and a big screen in the background playing images your hard, hard life. Task #1 is to stop whining, not just to other people, mainly to yourself. What do you mean you could not get any loans? What kind of whiny-ass thing is that? You could not get loans so you dropped off college? Unless you're Bill Gates or Sergey Brin, you did a huge mistake there. Get back into school at any cost. Anyone can get a college loan. There are federally-funded ones, there are guaranteed gov't loans, there are scholarships, in-school jobs, grants, emergency cash crises funds at schools, etc... To me it sounds like you wanted out of college and you took the first good excuse to get out. You are screwed now because once you get out and get the $9/hour full-time job (oops, you already did), it is REALLY hard to get back into school. Now all you need is get a girlfriend, get her pregnant, and congratulations, you have locked yourself out of school. If you have financial obligations (credit cards), consider filing bankruptcy. Otherwise, you WILL be held prisoner to your monthly payments (been there, done that). Here's my advice: Get back into college. If you have a car that's all yours, keep it, otherwise sell it and buy a bike. Once you are accepted: Get a job. Any job that is compatible with school hours. If you have potential as a programmer, then get a job/freelance as a programmer while you study. If not, flipping burgers to pay for school is a very dignified thing to do. (It's bailing out of college for whiny reasons that carries no dignity) Stop whining. It does not get any easier if you whine. Problems do not get solved if you whine. Consider your own question: "Is there some alternative that would allow me to go back to school?" WTF are you waiting for? For the problem to fix itself?? You are waiting for something to "allow" you to go back to school... I will tell you right now, it's not gonna happen. You have to make it happen. Put your ass back in school first, and THEN figure out how the rest of your life will adapt to school life and priorities. You are not the first person to have to deal with this, there is a huge mechanism in place already to allow people to stay in school. It just carries a cost (sorry, the new car will probably have to wait till after graduation). All things say you do not want to pay that cost. Snap out of it.

tialys 18y ago
gm is a bit harsh here, but he's on the right track. I have my parents co-signing my loans (thank god) but thats all that they've done for me. Everything else I've done on my own and I'm paying for most of my college as I go and from summer jobs. I know if I needed to I could easilly get my own loans (it's not that hard... you just have to deal with higher rates). Also, a friend of mine is in the same boat as you and depending on where you go you may qualify as a 'non-traditional' student since you're older than the average freshman and in that case you will qualify for extra financial aid. Also, file FAFSA without your parents (which you can do so long as they haven't claimed you on their taxes for the previous year) and you'll probably get close to a free ride to school. College is important, and you really will gain a lot just by getting the degree.
- ajross 18y ago
  Some of the point here is that the "college" section on your resume represents not just education, but evidence that you're not a total flake. An employer is going to look at your story and wonder why you couldn't, at the very least, get through a few community college courses or an associates degree. As someone who went to a "top" university and received a ton of financial aid, the money excuse doesn't really hold water. You can make this work if you try. Since you haven't made it work, one tends to worry that you aren't really trying. Someone who isn't going to work hard isn't likely going to be a good employee.
  - alnayyir 18y ago
    I'm not a flake, I just don't have access to funds.
    - gm 18y ago
      Alnayyir, I am by no means belittling you; stop calling yourself a flake. College: You can do it. You should do it. It's worth it. The tools are there. Almost everyone wants to help you. The mechanism is set up to help you. Heck, there are even scholarships for grandchildren of volunteer farmer firemen; and there are searchable databases too. My message to you is: Do it. Here's what I did, I had a similar situation and I worked my way through college for a CS degree: Go to a local community college (in your state as they often have huge discounts for state residents) that has a way to transfer to a big 4-year university. Do research, and choose the one that has the best transfer track record. These colleges are good not only because of the implied higher education quality but because the counselors are better equipped to get you into the 4-year. Use this time wisely, accomplish two things: a) Get good grades, the best you can; and b) build up your professional programming history so you can get a steady stream of consulting gigs later in life (you're gonna need the income). It's perfectly OK to take 3-4 years doing this. Do it well, this is the key to your future. Use the system too. My community college permitted dropping out of a course late in the term,so if the calculus class is looking like you'll get a C or maybe a B, drop it and take it again. Don't screw up your grades, they are your ticket to the future. When I found out 4-year universities did not care about dropped courses, I started keeping my "A" classes, and dropping everything else. When the time is right, transfer to the best 4-year university you get accepted to (you will because you got good grades at the community college). Work your way as much as you can through university, come out with as little debt as possible. Nowadays you even have guru.com and the like. You can certainly find a job there. One of the best things in colleges/universities nowadays are the job centers. There are lots of companies that advertise for jobs only at their college's job center. That's pretty much it. It's not impossible.

by gm 18y ago

tialys 18y ago

gm is a bit harsh here, but he's on the right track. I have my parents co-signing my loans (thank god) but thats all that they've done for me. Everything else I've done on my own and I'm paying for most of my college as I go and from summer jobs. I know if I needed to I could easilly get my own loans (it's not that hard... you just have to deal with higher rates). Also, a friend of mine is in the same boat as you and depending on where you go you may qualify as a 'non-traditional' student since you're older than the average freshman and in that case you will qualify for extra financial aid. Also, file FAFSA without your parents (which you can do so long as they haven't claimed you on their taxes for the previous year) and you'll probably get close to a free ride to school. College is important, and you really will gain a lot just by getting the degree.

ajross 18y ago
Some of the point here is that the "college" section on your resume represents not just education, but evidence that you're not a total flake. An employer is going to look at your story and wonder why you couldn't, at the very least, get through a few community college courses or an associates degree. As someone who went to a "top" university and received a ton of financial aid, the money excuse doesn't really hold water. You can make this work if you try. Since you haven't made it work, one tends to worry that you aren't really trying. Someone who isn't going to work hard isn't likely going to be a good employee.
- alnayyir 18y ago
  I'm not a flake, I just don't have access to funds.
  - gm 18y ago
    Alnayyir, I am by no means belittling you; stop calling yourself a flake. College: You can do it. You should do it. It's worth it. The tools are there. Almost everyone wants to help you. The mechanism is set up to help you. Heck, there are even scholarships for grandchildren of volunteer farmer firemen; and there are searchable databases too. My message to you is: Do it. Here's what I did, I had a similar situation and I worked my way through college for a CS degree: Go to a local community college (in your state as they often have huge discounts for state residents) that has a way to transfer to a big 4-year university. Do research, and choose the one that has the best transfer track record. These colleges are good not only because of the implied higher education quality but because the counselors are better equipped to get you into the 4-year. Use this time wisely, accomplish two things: a) Get good grades, the best you can; and b) build up your professional programming history so you can get a steady stream of consulting gigs later in life (you're gonna need the income). It's perfectly OK to take 3-4 years doing this. Do it well, this is the key to your future. Use the system too. My community college permitted dropping out of a course late in the term,so if the calculus class is looking like you'll get a C or maybe a B, drop it and take it again. Don't screw up your grades, they are your ticket to the future. When I found out 4-year universities did not care about dropped courses, I started keeping my "A" classes, and dropping everything else. When the time is right, transfer to the best 4-year university you get accepted to (you will because you got good grades at the community college). Work your way as much as you can through university, come out with as little debt as possible. Nowadays you even have guru.com and the like. You can certainly find a job there. One of the best things in colleges/universities nowadays are the job centers. There are lots of companies that advertise for jobs only at their college's job center. That's pretty much it. It's not impossible.